The Vice President of Uganda and Woman Member of Parliament for Katakwi District, Maj. (Rtd) Jessica Alupo Rose Epel, took part in the ongoing national identity card renewal exercise on Saturday at her residence in Katakwi Town Council, Ngariam County.
Following the quick 10-minute renewal process, Alupo addressed journalists and urged all Ugandans to seize the opportunity to renew their National Identification Cards, emphasizing that citizenship is a constitutional right.
She stressed the importance of the exercise, noting that it plays a critical role in maintaining accurate, secure, and inclusive identity data, which is vital for national planning, elections, and public service delivery.
“Unlike the old cards, the new national IDs will include enhanced security features such as biometric iris scanning, making them more secure and significantly reducing the risk of identity fraud,” Alupo explained.
The current renewal campaign targets IDs that expired or are set to expire in 2024, 2025, and 2026. To complete the process, applicants are required to present their expired national ID or, in case of loss, a valid police report.
Alupo appealed to residents of the Teso sub-region and Ugandans across the country to adhere to the government’s set timelines.
According to the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA), the renewal exercise, which began on May 27, will run for six months and is taking place in all parishes nationwide.
She also encouraged citizens to identify their correct citizenship category under Uganda’s Constitution to avoid delays during processing and expressed gratitude to the NIRA team for their dedicated service.
Each district has been equipped with 10 mobile registration kits, which rotate through parishes according to schedules set by local authorities.
The government has allocated over UGX 666 billion for the renewal exercise, aiming to process approximately 15.8 million renewals and register an additional 17.2 million individuals, including adults and youth who have turned 16 years old.
Irene Tumwa, the Katakwi District Registration Officer, warned that providing false information is a criminal offense.
She emphasized the need for citizens to accurately declare their citizenship categories and added that the parish-level strategy and digital registration process aim not only to issue IDs but also to verify and empower every Ugandan.
Tumwa noted a positive turnout so far, reporting that over 3,000 people have already renewed their National Identification Cards in Katakwi.
Benjamin Omalwa, the Registration Assistant who facilitated the Vice President’s renewal, congratulated her for participating and encouraged Katakwi residents to turn out in large numbers for the exercise.
